How To Meet New Friends When Traveling Solo
Traveling solo offers many benefits, including the ability to control your own schedule. You get to decide when you wake up, which tours you want to go on, and when you want to leave your current location and head to a new destination.
However, one of the drawbacks of solo travel is that it’s often hard to meet new people. You can sometimes feel lonely. You will be in a new city, probably without knowing anyone there.
Nevertheless, there are a few ways you can meet new people and make new friends when traveling solo. In fact, solo travel’s drawback is also a benefit. It forces you to go out of your comfort zone and meet new people when you otherwise wouldn’t have.
Here are the best ways to make new friends when traveling by yourself.
Go on a Pub Crawl
Copyright US Ghost Adventures
It can be a bit overwhelming and intimidating to go to nightclubs, bars, and pubs by yourself. That’s especially true if you are in a new city.
There’s no reason to go alone! Why face the awkwardness of sitting down by yourself in a busy bar when you could explore the city’s nightlife with others?
A pub crawl is a great way to do that. Pub crawls are tours that take you from one pub, bar, or club to another. It will allow you to experience several bars in a single night. You will usually be taking one or two drinks in each bar as well, so it will give you an opportunity to try out new cocktails or beer brands that are not available in your home city.
If you want to spice things up a bit, though, take a haunted pub crawl. This is particularly relevant now that Halloween is coming up.
A haunted pub crawl in New Orleans, for example, will take you to spooky bars and haunted spots in New Orleans’ French Quarter. An R-rated night of boos and booze is something worth experiencing at least once in your lifetime!
Stay in a Hostel
If you stay in a hotel or guesthouse, you might miss out on the opportunity to meet new friends. The same applies if you stay in an Airbnb, unless you are renting a room in a shared apartment or house.
One of the best ways to make new friends while traveling solo is to stay in social places. Most hostels are geared towards helping people make friends. They often feature a social area, such as a sitting room or bar. Some of them even organize dance classes, tours, or other activities.
Staying in a hostel doesn’t mean you have to stay in a bunk bed in a shared room with 10 other people. Most hostels offer private rooms as well. Even if you stay in a private room in a hostel, you will be able to make use of the social areas to meet other people. Hotels and Airbnbs are just not usually set up to facilitate social interaction like hostels are.
Attend a Class
If you’re not staying in accommodation that facilitates social interaction, consider enrolling in some sort of class or workshop. Regardless of your interests, there is usually a class that you can attend which you will find enjoyable.
Some options may include:
- Dance classes
- Yoga classes
- Gym classes
- Language classes
- Martial arts classes
- Cooking classes
Most cities of reasonable size have one or more of these classes. They’re usually a great way to connect with locals in particular, especially if you attend a gym class or martial arts class. Some classes, like language classes, might be more geared towards foreigners and tourists, but it really depends on the area and the city you are visiting.
Go on a Ghost Tour
San Francisco Chinatown – Copyright US Ghost Adventures
A ghost tour is a great way to experience a different side of the city—one that most tourists will never see—and to meet fellow travelers.
On a San Francisco ghost tour, for example, you’ll visit some of San Francisco’s spookiest haunts. From the Fairmont Hotel to the Pacific Union Club to San Francisco’s haunted Chinatown, you’ll learn all about the ghosts that haunt this city.
Use a Social App to Connect With Others
Nowadays, meeting new people is made easier by apps that facilitate connection and communication. For travelers, Couchsurfing is an essential app that you should have on your phone.
While many people use Couchsurfing to find free accommodation at people’s houses or apartments, Couchsurfing is not meant only for that. It also allows people to connect with other travelers who are visiting the same cities as well as locals who are interested in meeting people who are visiting their city.
You can stay in your own accommodation and use Couchsurfing to set up meetups and hangouts. For example, you can post that you are looking for others to get some drinks with you on a Friday night or go on a hike on a nearby trail. You can also see requests from other travelers who are looking for people like yourself to hang out with.
Some people also use apps like Tinder or Bumble to meet others. Bumble isn’t just for dating, despite common belief. On Bumble BFF, you can match with people of all genders who are looking for purely platonic friendships.
Attend a Meetup
Another great way to make new friends when traveling is to attend a meetup. There are all kinds of meetups that might be happening in that city, including:
- Language exchanges
- Chess tournaments
- Hikes
- Entrepreneurial networking events
- Book clubs
Meetup.com is a great place to find these meetups. You can see things that are happening and join, and they’re usually free or only cost a small entrance fee! It’s a great way to meet locals with similar interests.
